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Thursday, December 29, 2011

It is perfect for a New Year's Eve celebration because not only is it cake, but it has a taste of Champagne (a NYE staple.) I made this recipe last year after I saw it featured on Betty Crocker's 2011 calendar and it is VERY delicious!

Ever since I was old enough to hold a crayon in my hand I have been writing thank you notes to people who have given me gifts. As I grew up I started to realize that fewer and fewer people write thank you notes. Now, myMr "Fix-It" Fiance (yes, we're engaged now!) and I disagree on this issue every birthday, Christmas, or event that includes receiving a "gift."

He thinks that a heartfelt "Thank You" is good enough and a written letter is not necessary. I think that thank you notes are necessary for not only birthday or Christmas gifts, but also when someone goes out of their way for you (such as helps plan a party with you!) Perhaps I go a little "over the top" with the thank you notes, but that's just me.

I'm not going to pressure you into writing thank you notes, there are obviously many schools of thought on the topic, but I do want to help you write one if you so choose!(Try it out, it might be fun!)

Why Write a Thank You Note:

Writing a thank you note, is a formal way to thank someone for their gift, time, money, help, attendance, etc. I would compare it much like a greeting card, it could possibly go in the trash after someone reads it, but for that moment while they are reading your heartfelt words, they appreciate it.

Where to Wite a Thank You Note:

If you take the time to write a thank you note, then take the time to create a clean surface, find a nice pen, and even a decent chair to sit in. You don't have to dress up in a prom dress just to write a formal thank you, but you don't want to make the note look like you were writing the note while trying to drive your car and drink your Starbucks.

When to Write a Thank You Note:

There is no "expiration" on a thank you, however it would be rather weird to get a thank you note for attending a co-workers' daughters party 5 years ago, today. Most books and references say about a month tops on thank you notes. I like to get them out in a week or two, that way the reason or gift I want to thank them for is still fresh in my mind.

What to Write in a Thank You Note:

Obviously in a thank you note you want to THANK the person for the gift they gave you. However a letter that looks like

Dear Joe Doe,

Thanks for the cookie cutters.

Regards,

Jessica

looks rather foolish if you ask me. A few things you can add to a thank you are:

For a Gift:- What you are going to do with the gift - When you will use it.- How you felt when you received it.

For Time, Help, or Attendance to a function:- Why you were so happy they attended.- Thank them for a specific action.- The way you felt to see them at the function.

Thursday, December 22, 2011

Especially around the Holidays, we all get busy with the hustle and bustle of buying gifts, decorating the house, visiting with family and friends, and sometimes there just isn't enough time to bake dozens upon dozens of cookies. There are a few options to help cutting down on the work of baking your own Christmas desserts. One is a cookie exchange with a few of your friends, or you could make some easy no-bake, but very classy dessert options. I have gathered a list of easy to make dessert ideas on Pinterest (from fellow bloggers!) and want to share their links with you.

Thursday, December 8, 2011

I love searching and finding fun and *free* downloadable fonts. They are a really neat way to make DIY invitations, cards, or any type of document more personal (rather than using the average Times New Roman.)

Here are a few fonts that I found that would be great addition to Christmas party invites, decorations, or greeting cards. (Due to Copyright I did not copy any pictures of the fonts. Please click on the link to look at the fonts on the original website!)

Tuesday, December 6, 2011

There is RARELY left over cake in my house. After a birthday party, I usually substitute most meals (meaning ALL meals) with any "left over" cake. However, I decided to use some left over cupcakes from my Classy Kitty "Breakfast at Tiffany's" Party to make a Classy Thanksgiving treat: Cake Pops!

I LOVE cake pops because they allow guests to enjoy a small treat without the hazards of cake crumbles from a piece of cake or wrapper from a cup cake. Also, I knew that being Thanksgiving most of my family members would be too full of turkey and pie for a whole piece of cake, a little pop of cake is the perfect solution!

How To: Cake Pops

Bill of Materials:

Left Over Cake (or make a cake if you wish!)

Icing

Lollipop Sticks

Chocolate and/or White Chocolate

Plastic Wrap

Tooth Picks

Sprinkles (optional)

Decorative Flags (optional)

Step One: Put your already iced cake into a bowl.

Step Two: Use a mixer (hand held or counter-top) to mix up the contents in the bowl until it is completely unrecognizable Make sure there are no cake chunks. You want the consistency to be sticky enough to create balls, but not so sticky that they are mushy.

Tip: Start with more cake and less icing. It is easy to add icing, but not take it away.

Step Three: Use mixture to create truffle size balls. I would have used a "ice cream scoop" (which most people use for cookie dough) unfortunately mine broke and I was forced to use the ol' two spoons trick.

Step Four: Put cake balls into the freezer for about twenty minutes to firm up.

Step Five: Use tooth picks to dip cake balls into chocolate and place on to plates covered with plastic wrap. Put these in the freezer so they harden faster.

Tip: The plastic wrap helps to release the hardened chocolate from the plate after it is frozen. Otherwise it might break when you try to lift it from the plate.

Step Six: Dip the top of the already chocolate dipped cake balls into white chocolate, stick a lollipop stick into the top, and cover with sprinkles. It is important to do all of these steps at the same time for each cake ball because other wise the white chocolate will harden and it will be near impossible to stick the lollipop into it.

Step Seven: Add flags as a decoration to the cake pops!

Ta-Da! All Done!

I realize that some people make their cake pops as actual 'lollipops" however I have found that if you put the cake pop at the top of the stick, it will fall down the stick after a few hours unless the perfect consistency of cake and icing was made in step two. That's why I like the cake pops on the bottom of the stick!

Also, be creative when using different kinds of chocolate. I used two colors with sprinkles as decoration, but you could use one color as a base and another as a drizzle over the tops! Get creative!

Friday, December 2, 2011

This Friday starts something new here at Classy Event Organizer: Fabulous Friday Featurette! What is this you may ask? Each Friday I will "feature" a blogger, website, product, or just awesome stuff that I think my readers could benefit from. (There are so many good ideas out there, I want to share some that I found!!)